[Conri]

2. What are "rilezu"? From the Japanese site, I'm gathering that they are reworked cels of some kind. At $200-$400 each, they'd better be really, really nice. And they look it.

Rilezu are a spawn of the switch from cels to computer-colored animation. Many cel collectors just aren't interested in production sketches, which aren't colored, hard to find, and often really rough or not the best of shots. So, some studios have emerged that specifically work to create "rilezu" like Madoka and Office F&O. They make a deal with the production studio to use some of the douga (these are the finished sketches that get scanned into the computer for coloration) to create hand-painted post production cels...only one for a single douga, essentially maintaining the "one of a kind" status inherited from production cels.

Depending on the composition of the image chosen (some shots are composed with multiple douga) and the condition of the douga, a merged or new sketch might need to be created before the rilezu process begins. There is never a guarantee that you will receive this production or post production sketch with your rilezu; it is up to the production studio whether they release their sketches. The rilezu come in a nice package, often matted and always with a color copy background and some kind of certificate of authenticity.

Since rilezu are specifically created for sale, they are better quality than production cels. They avoid many of the problems faced by production cels, which were regarded as waste after filming. The better quality lines won't fade (unless you stupidly put the rilezu in direct sunlight) and aren't broken--an effect on many production cels caused by dirty, heavily-used xerox machines. And of course, they never get folded or placed in giant piles.

Unfortunately, if a deal isn't made during or soon after production, a series will never see rilezu created... Studios often burn or otherwise dispose of their sketches. Eventually even the douga will be probably be created on the computer by all studios in the interest of saving time/money/resources, but rilezu will still be able to be made from the computer images.

I hope I sufficiently answered your question. I'm no expert, but I like to think I know a few things. Make sure to differentiate between rilezu and reproduction cels like these or these. Reproduction cels have multiples made...I think either 5 or 10 each in the case of Pierrot, and I don't think there's a limit on KyoAni's.